Diamine - Lilac Satin

Diamine Lilac Satin - ink drop

Lilac Satin is part of Diamine’s Shimmertastic series. It comes in a 50ml, cylindrical bottle, and the silver cap indicates that it’s a silver shimmer ink. Diamine’s shimmer is generally a very fine particle and reasonably well-behaved. It’s a great brand to dive down the shimmery rabbit hole!

Visually...wow! Lilac Satin is probably the perfect name for this pillowy soft, lavender caress. At its foundation, it’s a mild to medium, gentle violet. There’s nothing abrasive or unsophisticated in the tone of what can sometimes be an aggressive color category in its darker examples. Diamine’s shimmers are smoother and finer than many, and that’s true here. The silver shimmer coats the base color, leaving a very attractive, soft ribbon of silvery lavender. It’s a beautiful combination.

Diamine Lilac Satin - shades and shimmer

As a writing ink, this is a very easy to work with ink. It’s smooth flowing, and it didn’t cause problems in use or cleaning. It’s very versatile and worked well on all five test papers. Mnemosyne and Kokuyo were best in terms of appearance, but it performed well on all four premium papers. Strokes were crisp and clean, with drying times from 15-30 seconds. Strokes were nice on office copy paper, too. I expected some feathering, but it was very clean overall. Drying here was fast at only 5 seconds. A bronze sheen was seen on the splatter, but subtle hints only appeared on Rhodia and Apica. This is a nice writing ink.

Diamine Lilac Satin - ink swatch card with drying

It’s easy to recommend Diamine Lilac Satin. It’s a beautiful ink, usable across a wide range of papers. As with any shimmer ink, you need to practice good pen hygiene habits, but this silvery, violet dream easily makes the effort worthwhile!

November 2020